If you go
› What: Holiday tea and open house.› When: 1-4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 4.› Where: Houston Museum of Decorative Arts, 201 High St.› Admission: $25 adults, $20 seniors 65 and older, $5 children 4-12.› Phone: 423-267-7176.› Email: houstonmuseumchattanooga@gmail.com.› Website: www.thehoustonmuseum.org› Note: Reservations are suggested but not required; RSVP by phone or email.
The Houston Museum of Decorative Arts will host its annual holiday tea and open house on Sunday, Dec. 4.
The event is a fundraiser for the unique facility, which houses the collection of Anna Safley Houston, who during her lifetime amassed more than 15,000 antique pitchers and thousands of other glassware pieces and antiques.
The gift shop will be open so that visitors may get gift-giving ideas. Admission includes a guided tour of the Victorian home and the antiques collection.
Authentic food is paramount to a proper English tea party, and tables will be filled with an assortment of sweets and savories, including scones with lemon curd, clotted cream, finger sandwiches, trifle - and tea, of course.
But in a setting like the Houston, visitors also appreciate the fine china on which it's served.
According to the museum's research, "porcelain cups and saucers were first collected by European kings and queens as early as the 17th century. Frederick the Great presented a cup and saucer to Emperor Joseph II on his coronation. For France's Marie Antoinette, decorating a table was a passion, and she only accepted the finest examples."
Houston officials say a cup of tea provides a few moments of quiet, personal time.
It is, they say in a news release, "a moment of civility and refinement, where one can just sit and contemplate at a much slower pace. What better time than during the busy holidays to take a moment to enjoy and relax?"